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Deriving Mercury Exposure Risk From The Feeding Ecology Of Coastal Sharks In Coastal Louisiana, Mallory Miller, Jeffrey Plumlee, Owen Henderson, Sydney Moyo, Michael Hayes Jan 2026

Deriving Mercury Exposure Risk From The Feeding Ecology Of Coastal Sharks In Coastal Louisiana, Mallory Miller, Jeffrey Plumlee, Owen Henderson, Sydney Moyo, Michael Hayes

Distinguished Undergraduate Researcher Program

Coastal sharks have high concentrations of mercury (Hg) in tissues, but what increases mercury exposure is unclear. Blacktip (Carcharhinus limbatus) and bull (Carcharhinus leucas) sharks are commonly harvested in Louisiana’s commercial shark fishery. Because of health risk from mercury consumption, we ask: Are there food web characteristics that increase exposure of sharks to mercury? Biomarkers, such as stable isotopes sulfur (δ³⁴S) and nitrogen (δ¹⁵N) indicate feeding habits linked to prey trophic level and prey use of freshwater which influences total mercury (THg) concentrations. We hypothesize increasing trophic level (higher δ¹⁵N) and increasing reliance on freshwater prey (higher δ³⁴S) will increase …

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Feelings And Futures: Social Design Addressing Identity And Engagement Of Adolescent Girls In A Community-Based Organization, Eseoghene Mukoro Jan 2026

Feelings And Futures: Social Design Addressing Identity And Engagement Of Adolescent Girls In A Community-Based Organization, Eseoghene Mukoro

Distinguished Undergraduate Researcher Program

Community organizations can provide numerous benefits to adolescent youth in various aspects of their lives—socially, psychologically, and physically, to name a few. Unfortunately, many youth-serving organizations aim to serve youth without directly involving their perspectives in the creation of their respective programs. At the Gardere Initiative, adolescent girls appear to have low levels of engagement and belonging, while their male counterparts enjoy activities and spaces catered to them. This poses a question of how this community organization might better serve the desires and life context of these adolescent girls.
Social Design is the practice of designing an intervention (product, service, …

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Memory For Everyday Chores In Younger And Older Adults, Cameron Mccleary, Katie Cherry Jan 2026

Memory For Everyday Chores In Younger And Older Adults, Cameron Mccleary, Katie Cherry

Distinguished Undergraduate Researcher Program

This study examined episodic memory performance for everyday household chores in younger (18-32 years) and older adults (65-79 years). With the increasing older adult population in the United States, understanding age-related memory differences and identifying strategies to enhance memory performance in later life is needed. Building on previous research demonstrating the pictorial superiority effect and benefits of semantic encoding across the adult lifespan, this study utilized a 2 × 2 × 2 between-groups factorial design to investigate the effects of age group (younger, older), encoding task (standard intentional learning, semantic elaboration), and stimulus format (text only, text with pictorial illustrations) …

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Relearning Language: A Meta-Analysis Of Syntactic Priming In Aphasia, Ally Miller, Willem Van Boxtel Jan 2026

Relearning Language: A Meta-Analysis Of Syntactic Priming In Aphasia, Ally Miller, Willem Van Boxtel

Distinguished Undergraduate Researcher Program

Background: Despite the importance of grammatical skills for participation
in daily life, treatments for sentence–level abilities in aphasia
are comparatively scarce. The psycholinguistic paradigm of syntactic
priming has recently been advanced as a potential assessment and
treatment for grammatical skills, and existing evidence on priming in
aphasia is highly promising. Nevertheless, a comprehensive analysis of
the strength of priming effects in aphasia, as well as treatment components
which might amplify these effects, has not been reported.
This meta–analysis synthesizes existing findings on syntactic priming
in aphasia, aiming to provide a comprehensive picture of priming
effects and their potential application for …

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The Healing Power Of Nanoparticles: Bioengineering Gelatin Films With Lignin-Graft-Plga Nanoparticles For Enhanced Tissue Repair, Marie Howe, Cristina Sabliov, Thanida Chuacharoen, Willyam Nikiema Jan 2026

The Healing Power Of Nanoparticles: Bioengineering Gelatin Films With Lignin-Graft-Plga Nanoparticles For Enhanced Tissue Repair, Marie Howe, Cristina Sabliov, Thanida Chuacharoen, Willyam Nikiema

Distinguished Undergraduate Researcher Program

Fish gelatin, a biocompatible material, can be methacrylated to enable its photo-crosslinking and formation of hydrogels for tissue-repair applications (1). This study investigated the incorporation of lignin-grafted PLGA nanoparticles (LNPs) into 3D-printed fGelMA hydrogels as controlled drug delivery systems. Lignin has UV absorbing properties, which could potentially interfere with photocrosslinking of fGelMA (2). These LNPs possess hydrophobic PLGA core and hydrophilic lignin forming the shell providing ample opportunities for delivery of drugs of different chemistries (3). Fluorescent LNPs (FLNPs) were engineered by covalently bonding a fluorophore to the shell prior to nanoparticle synthesis to allow for fluorophore tracking. The understanding …

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Motor Planning And Execution During Feeding In Autistic Children, Iresa Lincoln Jan 2026

Motor Planning And Execution During Feeding In Autistic Children, Iresa Lincoln

Distinguished Undergraduate Researcher Program

Autism is one of the most common pediatric developmental disability diagnoses, diagnosed in approximately 1 in 31 children in the U.S. and 1 in 100 children globally. Autism is often characterized by differences in social communication and repetitive patterns of behavior, activities,
or interests; however, prevalence of clinically significant motor differences in autistic individuals is between 50-95%. These motor differences often interfere with activities of daily living and community participation. Research assessing motor control in autism has yielded mixed findings as to whether the motor differences observed in autistic individuals are associated with differences in motor planning or motor execution. …

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Bridging Distances: Exploring Teleoperation’S Present And Prospects In The Construction Industry, Marc Hebert, Aras Maqsoodi, Ali Kazemian Jan 2026

Bridging Distances: Exploring Teleoperation’S Present And Prospects In The Construction Industry, Marc Hebert, Aras Maqsoodi, Ali Kazemian

Distinguished Undergraduate Researcher Program

Telerobotics has enabled major advancements and developments in multiple fields by providing safer robotic solutions. The construction industry has previously employed teleoperation, but its use has been limited in scope and primarily focused on earthwork. Teleoperation is a valuable tool for ensuring safe operations in extreme environments and inaccessible areas, enabling construction workers to remotely oversee tasks that are traditionally high-risk. Recent advancements in high-speed telecommunication networks, innovative control systems, and growing research in teleoperation have significant potential and practicality for application in the construction industry. This paper reviews the existing literature on construction teleoperation, emphasizing how advancements in Human-Machine …

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Evaluation Of Liberty® Herbicide For Zygosity Verification In Transgenic Maize (Zea Mays) Expressing The Bar Gene From Streptomyces Hygroscopicus, Isabel Hau Jan 2026

Evaluation Of Liberty® Herbicide For Zygosity Verification In Transgenic Maize (Zea Mays) Expressing The Bar Gene From Streptomyces Hygroscopicus, Isabel Hau

Distinguished Undergraduate Researcher Program

Maize (Zea mays) is a major global crop cultivated for food and feed. Most commercial varieties grown in the United States contain herbicide-resistant traits to facilitate weed management. One such herbicide trait is Liberty-Link, which contains the bialaphos resistance (bar) gene from Streptomyces hygroscopicus that confers resistance to glufosinate-ammonium, the active
ingredient in Liberty herbicide. This bar gene is also widely used as a selectable marker in plant transformation. In non-transgenic plants, glufosinate-ammonium inhibits plant glutamine synthetase by acting as a glutamate analog, thereby disrupting amino acid biosynthesis and leading
to plant death. In contrast, transgenic plants expressing the bar …

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Characterization Of The Crazy Sphinx Skarn Deposit, Boulder Batholith, Helena, Mt, Samuel Juneau Jan 2026

Characterization Of The Crazy Sphinx Skarn Deposit, Boulder Batholith, Helena, Mt, Samuel Juneau

Distinguished Undergraduate Researcher Program

The Boulder Batholith of southwest Montana is a geologically significant locality due to its high concentrations of critical metals like copper, lead, zinc, silver, gold, and molybdenum. The Crazy Sphinx Mine, a locality discovered and named by Bart Cannon, is well known for producing high quality mineral specimens of blue spinel, colorless grossular, and amber vesuvianite. The Crazy Sphinx Mine is interpreted to be a skarn deposit of the Boulder Batholith which is hosted in interbedded limestone and clay mudstone. To date there have been no publications on Crazy Sphinx Mine characterizing the overall mineral assemblage of the skarn deposit. …

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Measuring The Rise And Fall Of Plasma 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Concentrations In Blue-Tongued Skinks (Tiliqua Scincoides) Following Ultraviolet B Exposure And Withdrawal, Ashleigh Godke, Haerin Rhim, M. Graciela Aguilar, Keishla Marrero-Acosta, Mark Mitchell Jan 2026

Measuring The Rise And Fall Of Plasma 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Concentrations In Blue-Tongued Skinks (Tiliqua Scincoides) Following Ultraviolet B Exposure And Withdrawal, Ashleigh Godke, Haerin Rhim, M. Graciela Aguilar, Keishla Marrero-Acosta, Mark Mitchell

Distinguished Undergraduate Researcher Program

Species-specific husbandry guidelines remain limited for blue-tongued skinks (Tiliqua scincoides), especially in relation to ultraviolet B (UVB) lighting and vitamin D requirements. This study aimed to determine whether UVB exposure is necessary for these skinks and how long 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25-OHD) concentrations persist after UVB withdrawal. Eleven adult skinks who had been fed with wet cat food were exposed to 12 or 2 h of UVB per day for four weeks. Plasma 25-OHD concentrations were very low at the baseline, and significantly increased post-UVB in both groups (p < 0.01), with the 12-hour group increasing from baseline concentrations of 18.5 [12.8–20.5] nmol/L to 820 [730–1251.3] nmol/L and the 2-hour group increasing from baseline concentrations of 22 [15.5–22] nmol/L to 635 [401–892.5] nmol/L. Following the discontinuation of UVB exposure, 25-OHD gradually declined and was not significantly different from baseline concentrations at 7 and 4 months for the 12-hour and 2-hour groups, respectively. Dietary vitamin D3 (2.5 IU/g as dry matter basis), provided through wet cat food alone, appeared insufficient to support sustained plasma 25-OHD concentrations. These findings strongly suggest that blue-tongued skinks rely on UVB exposure to increase their 25-OHD concentrations. Moreover, the shorter 2-hour exposure provided a significant rise in 25-OHD concentrations and remained above baseline for 4 months, suggesting the shorter exposure can benefit these animals, while potentially reducing secondary risks associated with UVB exposure.

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From Millionaires To Marsh Island: Origin And Development Of Wetland Conservation Efforts In Louisiana, Roan Guidry Jan 2026

From Millionaires To Marsh Island: Origin And Development Of Wetland Conservation Efforts In Louisiana, Roan Guidry

Distinguished Undergraduate Researcher Program

Wetlands are protected, managed, and restored worldwide to provide a range of ecosystem services, including (i) habitat for plants and animals, (ii) carbon storage, (iii) improving downstream water quality, and (iv) reducing flooding by river and coastal waters. When did such conservation begin, and how do early conservation efforts shape recent public policy? This thesis identifies some of the earliest recorded examples of private efforts in Louisiana and analyzes how these early efforts shaped State and Federal Government action in the realm of conservation. The earliest wetland protection efforts in Louisiana began in the 1910s to sustain continental populations of …

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Relevant Responses Are Retrieved Faster In Familiar Contexts, Meghan Garcelon, Stanely West, Christopher Cox Jan 2026

Relevant Responses Are Retrieved Faster In Familiar Contexts, Meghan Garcelon, Stanely West, Christopher Cox

Distinguished Undergraduate Researcher Program

Determining which aspects of knowledge are relevant depends on current context and task demands. Familiar contexts may proactively reshape our brain’s knowledge repository to make context-appropriate information more accessible, increasing response selection speed. To test this, participants were asked to perform a word association task while imagining playing a game with a peer or child (contextualized conditions) or to produce short or creative responses (rule-based conditions). Participants were only assigned to only one of four conditions. We expected the context of playing a game with a peer or child would result in faster response times than making responses adhering to …

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Analyzing And Understanding America’S Involvement In The Global War In Terror Through The Oral Histories Of Its Veterans And Other Sources, Bryce Edwards Jan 2026

Analyzing And Understanding America’S Involvement In The Global War In Terror Through The Oral Histories Of Its Veterans And Other Sources, Bryce Edwards

Distinguished Undergraduate Researcher Program

From 2001 to the early 2020s, the United States and its allies have consistently engaged in political, military, counterinsurgency, and nation building operations in nations such as Afghanistan and Iraq. The efforts of this coalition first rallied to combat the threat of global terrorism after September 11th, yet it would then develop in decades-long assignment to rebuild these countries and their institutions with fundamental (and foreign) western values. This thesis intends to examine the conflict by conducting oral histories of its many veterans, to better understand their lived experience. These interviews will be supported by scholarly works from those involved …

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Gullah Geechee, Progenitors For African North American Maternal Lineage, Jennifer Caldwell, Imani Sykes, Robbie Beyl, Tomilowo Abijo, Kiara Charles, Fatimah Jackson Jan 2026

Gullah Geechee, Progenitors For African North American Maternal Lineage, Jennifer Caldwell, Imani Sykes, Robbie Beyl, Tomilowo Abijo, Kiara Charles, Fatimah Jackson

Distinguished Undergraduate Researcher Program

African American ancestral lineages are marked by resilience, shaped by centuries of forced migrations, the Transatlantic and domestic slave trades, and subsequent movements within the United States. These historical events have influenced both the cultural and genetic diversity of Legacy African Americans. This study examined mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) haplogroups among 189 participants—79 Gullah Geechee and 110 African Americans—to explore the Gullah Geechee as potential progenitors of other Legacy African North American lineages. Haplogroup analysis revealed L2 and L3 as the most frequent among both groups, comprising 34.6% and 38.8% in African Americans and 28.0% and 54.7% in Gullah Geechee, respectively. …

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Droplet Microfluidics Integrated With Machine Learning Reveals How Adipose-Derived Stem Cells Modulate Endocrine Response And Tumor Heterogeneity In Er+ Breast Cancer, Calley Chauvin, Braulio Andres Ortega Quesada, Elizabeth Martin, Adam Melvin Jan 2026

Droplet Microfluidics Integrated With Machine Learning Reveals How Adipose-Derived Stem Cells Modulate Endocrine Response And Tumor Heterogeneity In Er+ Breast Cancer, Calley Chauvin, Braulio Andres Ortega Quesada, Elizabeth Martin, Adam Melvin

Distinguished Undergraduate Researcher Program

Approximately 70% of breast cancer (BC) diagnoses are estrogen receptor positive (ER+) with ∼40% of ER+ BC patients presenting de novo resistance to endocrine therapy (ET). Recent studies identify the tumor microenvironment (TME) as having a key role in endocrine resistance in which adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs) play an essential role in cancer progression. Prior studies have indicated that ASC characteristics such as age and BMI may play a role in cancer progression. Unfortunately, most studies on ASC-BC cross talk have relied on established two-dimensional (2D) culture systems or the use of conditioned media that cannot replicate the complexity of …

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Innovative Smart Sensing System For Accurate Monitoring Of Uhpc Setting Time, Ted Atera, Khalilullah Taj, Masoud Pasbani, Yen-Fang Su Jan 2026

Innovative Smart Sensing System For Accurate Monitoring Of Uhpc Setting Time, Ted Atera, Khalilullah Taj, Masoud Pasbani, Yen-Fang Su

Distinguished Undergraduate Researcher Program

Ultra-High-Performance Concrete (UHPC) is an advanced concrete material known for its strength and durability. Its superior mechanical properties make it an ideal material for demanding structural applications such as bridges. Accurate setting time measurements are crucial in helping to optimise the performance of UHPC. All conventional methods and standards for measuring the setting time of concrete rely on using expensive specialised equipment, such as the Vicat apparatus, which assesses penetration depth or resistance. However, these methods may not be well-suited for UHPC due to its rapid surface drying while the interior remains fresh. This prevents free needle penetration and leads …

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Freshwater Mussels Of Louisiana: A Field Guide, Franchesca Ruiz, Garrett Hopper Jan 2026

Freshwater Mussels Of Louisiana: A Field Guide, Franchesca Ruiz, Garrett Hopper

Distinguished Undergraduate Researcher Program

Freshwater mussels (Order Unionidae) are important animals that provide valuable ecosystem functions and services. Due to a multitude of factors such as habitat modifications and habitat destruction related to human population growth many mussel populations are declining throughout the United States increasing the need for public awareness. Louisiana is home to 63 mussel species, but most residents are not aware of their presence, importance, or state of imperilment. We addressed this by creating a field guide to the freshwater mussels of Louisiana. Our goals include providing a resource for accurate freshwater mussel field identification, increasing public and scientific awareness of …

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Design Of Novel Small Molecule Modulators Of Cd36 For Metabolic And Oncological Applications, Arys Morman, Benedict Barras, Fatima Rivas Jan 2026

Design Of Novel Small Molecule Modulators Of Cd36 For Metabolic And Oncological Applications, Arys Morman, Benedict Barras, Fatima Rivas

Distinguished Undergraduate Researcher Program

Metastasis accounts for over 90% of cancer related deaths and current studies link CD36 to the development of metastasis in several cancer models. CD36 is a scavenger receptor that is involved in fatty acid uptake and oxidized lipoprotein recognition. In both metabolic disorders and cancer, CD36 activity has been associated with lipid accumulation, insulin resistance, and tumor metastasis, making it a promising yet underexplored therapeutic target. Our current aim is to develop a library of small molecules that can be used to inhibit CD36 thereby decreasing production of oxidized low-density lipoprotein (oxLDL).
Triple-negative breast cancer is one of the most …

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Structural Determination And Regulatory Mechanisms Of Rice Lipoxygenase-1, Lillie Ballanco, Nathaniel Gilbert, Adam Offenbacher Jan 2026

Structural Determination And Regulatory Mechanisms Of Rice Lipoxygenase-1, Lillie Ballanco, Nathaniel Gilbert, Adam Offenbacher

Distinguished Undergraduate Researcher Program

Lipoxygenases (LOXs) are non-heme iron containing enzymes that catalyze the oxygenation of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) such as linoleic acid (LA). These lipoxygenase enzymes are found in both plants and animals. In humans, LOXs have been linked to inflammatory diseases such as asthma, atheroscelerosis, and allergic rhinitis. Plant LOXs have been primarily linked to the growth, development, and stress response of the plant. This paper focuses on Oryza sativa lipoxygenase-1 (OsLOX1), an enzyme found in rice (Oryza sativa). OsLOX1 has been associated with enhanced drought tolerance in rice and may play a role in regulating growth under water-limited conditions. Understanding …

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Lsu General Catalog 2026-2027, Louisiana State University And Agricultural And Mechanical College Jan 2026

Lsu General Catalog 2026-2027, Louisiana State University And Agricultural And Mechanical College

LSU General Catalog

The LSU General Catalog describes all undergraduate and graduate departments and programs with degree requirements and courses offered for each one. The LSU General Catalog includes information on registration and financial aid as well as academic services offered to all students

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Satellite-Mediated Quantum Clock Synchronization: Towards Precise Timing At A Global Scale, Sage B. Ducoing Dec 2025

Satellite-Mediated Quantum Clock Synchronization: Towards Precise Timing At A Global Scale, Sage B. Ducoing

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Accurate timekeeping is essential for scientific and technological advancements, particularly in areas of communication, networking, navigation, and high precision measurements. While many methods of time resolution are already established using classical resources, they fail to combine high precision outcomes with large-scale implementations. Additionally, numerous quantum networking architectures using satellite-assisted methods have demonstrated quantum communication on scales exceeding ground-based methods. For these reasons, we propose the use of a time synchronization method by which pairs of highly time-correlated photons are exchanged between clocks on satellites and clocks on Earth, al- lowing users to reconstruct the time offsets between their clocks. This …

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Cache-Conscious Sparse Matrix Dense Matrix Multiplication On Gpus, Haoqiang Guo Dec 2025

Cache-Conscious Sparse Matrix Dense Matrix Multiplication On Gpus, Haoqiang Guo

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Over the past decade, high-performance deep learning has evolved into a critical research domain, driven by the demand for efficient models and high inference throughput. Deep learning architectures have shifted from stacked convolutional layers to transformer-based models, while pruning techniques and graph-structured data have established sparse matrix–dense matrix multiplication (SpMM) as a fundamental kernel—particularly in graph neural networks (GNNs). Modern GPUs, with their massive parallelism and high-bandwidth memory, offer immense potential for accelerating these workloads. While SpMM implementations using the compressed sparse row (CSR) format remain common to avoid conversion overhead, preprocessing-based methods have recently demonstrated superior potential. In GNN …

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Investigating The Fatigue Behavior Of Inconel 939 And Inconel 718 Through Micromechanical Testing, Mohammad Hossein Shahini Dec 2025

Investigating The Fatigue Behavior Of Inconel 939 And Inconel 718 Through Micromechanical Testing, Mohammad Hossein Shahini

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

A detailed evaluation of fatigue crack growth (FCG) in a silicon-modified Inconel 939 alloy, fabricated via laser powder bed fusion additive manufacturing (L-PBF AM), was performed using cyclic bending tests on pre-notched microscale cantilevers with a cross-sectional dimension of 25 µm × 25 µm. To our knowledge, this study is the first to demonstrate that such microscale cantilever tests can effectively capture both the threshold and Paris-law regimes of FCG, despite the limited specimen size. The precise fabrication of these small-scale specimens allows for controlled fatigue crack propagation relative to the microstructure while minimizing the presence of volumetric defects. Notably, …

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Role Of Cellular Stress Responses In Innate Immune Defense Against Acute Respiratory Infections, Amit Sharma Dec 2025

Role Of Cellular Stress Responses In Innate Immune Defense Against Acute Respiratory Infections, Amit Sharma

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress sensor inositol-requiring enzyme 1α (IRE1α) is an important regulator of innate immune cells. However, its role in pulmonary innate host defenses remains poorly understood. This dissertation elucidates the dual, context-dependent role of IRE1α in host defense against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) pneumonia. We demonstrate IRE1α’s function as both a detrimental mediator of acute pathology and an essential facilitator of innate immune memory. Our work revealed that acute IRE1α activation during primary MRSA infection is detrimental. In lungs and alveolar macrophages (AMs), IRE1α is activated in response to MRSA infection. Consequently, IRE1α activation triggers a hyperinflammatory …

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From Storage Closet To Creative Oasis: How To Set Up An Atelier And Outdoor Space For Young Children, Catherine Lynch, Cynthia Dicarlo Dec 2025

From Storage Closet To Creative Oasis: How To Set Up An Atelier And Outdoor Space For Young Children, Catherine Lynch, Cynthia Dicarlo

Spark! Innovations in Early Childhood Education: A Research-to-Practice Journal for Educators

Creating meaningful learning spaces doesn't always require a big budget or new construction—sometimes, all it takes is a storage closet, a bit of imagination, and a deep respect for children’s ideas. In this article, I’ll share how we transformed underutilized spaces at our school into a vibrant atelier and outdoor classroom and offer tips to help you do the same.

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Supporting Best Practices In Family Engagement: Our Week Of The Young Child Experience, Michelle Fazio Brunson, Faith S. Birdwell, April Giddens Dec 2025

Supporting Best Practices In Family Engagement: Our Week Of The Young Child Experience, Michelle Fazio Brunson, Faith S. Birdwell, April Giddens

Spark! Innovations in Early Childhood Education: A Research-to-Practice Journal for Educators

Family engagement is a collaborative process where early childhood professionals, families, and children build positive, goal-oriented relationships. Incorporating family engagement into preschool programs is not merely beneficial but essential for promoting holistic child development in programs where children feel safe, cared for, and secure. In this article, we share the benefits of effective family engagement activities for families with young children and describe how we celebrated the National Association for the Education of Young Children's 2025 Week of the Young Child.

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Understanding And Supporting Sustained Attention In Young Children: What Research Tells Us About Choice, Play, And Teaching Conditions, Cynthia F. Dicarlo, Carrie L. Ota Dec 2025

Understanding And Supporting Sustained Attention In Young Children: What Research Tells Us About Choice, Play, And Teaching Conditions, Cynthia F. Dicarlo, Carrie L. Ota

Spark! Innovations in Early Childhood Education: A Research-to-Practice Journal for Educators

This article examines how sustained attention develops in young children and how different teaching conditions influence engagement during play. Drawing on studies with two-, three-, and four-year-olds, the findings show a developmental progression in which toddlers benefit from limited, adult-guided choices, while preschoolers sustain attention best when given autonomy to select their own materials. The article highlights how play, intentional choice-making, and age-appropriate scaffolding support children’s emerging self-regulation and engagement. Practical strategies are provided to help teachers design environments and interactions that promote deeper focus and independent learning.

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Using Food As A Fun And Effective Teaching Tool In Preschool, Kelly Furr, Melani Duffrin, Eugene A. Geist Dec 2025

Using Food As A Fun And Effective Teaching Tool In Preschool, Kelly Furr, Melani Duffrin, Eugene A. Geist

Spark! Innovations in Early Childhood Education: A Research-to-Practice Journal for Educators

Food is one of the most engaging, hands-on materials for preschool classrooms. This article highlights research from the Food FAN Academy (Furr, 2023), which demonstrates how food can be used as a teaching tool across early childhood learning environments. Practical strategies are provided for preschool teachers, including detailed lesson plans that connect to early math, science, literacy, and social development. The article emphasizes the importance of using everyday materials, cultural inclusivity, and active learning methods to promote curiosity, health awareness, and foundational skills in young learners.

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Abcs Of Behavior: Strategies To Effectively Reduce Challenging Behaviors, Sarah Matthews Dec 2025

Abcs Of Behavior: Strategies To Effectively Reduce Challenging Behaviors, Sarah Matthews

Spark! Innovations in Early Childhood Education: A Research-to-Practice Journal for Educators

This paper explores the application of the ABC (Antecedent-Behavior-Consequence) model and functional behavior assessments (FBAs) to understand and manage challenging behaviors in early childhood education settings. Grounded in developmental theory and informed by professional experience as an early interventionist, the paper emphasizes the importance of identifying behavioral triggers and using individualized, developmentally appropriate strategies. The role of collaboration among teachers, families, and specialists is highlighted as essential for consistent and effective intervention. Key strategies discussed include coaching caregivers, embedding interventions within natural classroom environments, and using positive, non-punitive approaches to time-out. The paper advocates for proactive, respectful behavioral guidance practices …

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Letter From The Editor, Cynthia Dicarlo Dec 2025

Letter From The Editor, Cynthia Dicarlo

Spark! Innovations in Early Childhood Education: A Research-to-Practice Journal for Educators

No abstract provided.

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